Someone Who Understands
by Meg0613
Summary: Takes place after Depravity Standard. Benson and Barba friendship/romance it will be a multi-part.
1. Chapter 1

Someone Who Understands

This is my first SVU story although I have watched since the very first episode. I was a long time Benson/Stabler shipper but I see a lot pf spark between Benson and Barba. None of the characters are mine but I appreciate the chance to play with them. This story takes place after Depravity Standard and contains spoilers. As this is my first SVU story I would love any feedback! If you enjoy it and are a Major Crimes fan check out my other stories.

They had been at the memorial service for Hector when she had gotten the call about Rollins. She looked at the time and knew she needed to get home to Noah and let the nanny go home. He could see the conflicted look on her face and could feel how both situations were pulling at her. Tentatively he placed a hand on her shoulder, "Go to the hospital and check on Rollins. I can go to your place and relive the nanny." He told.

The looks that crossed her face over the next few seconds ranged from shock, to doubt, to gratitude, back to doubt." You don't have to do that." She said.

He pressed his hand a little more firmly on her shoulder, "Liv, go to the hospital, Rollins needs you. It will be fine."

Olivia nodded not sure how he had this ability to talk into things so quickly, "OK, I will call Lindsay and let her know you are coming. Noah should be in bed by now. If he wakes up he will probably want a cup of milk and music turned back on." She told him already turning to instruct some patrol officers to get the mothers of the victims home safely.

"Barba, thank you." She said with the slightest grateful smile erasing the worry off her face for a second. He didn't know why but more and more often he felt compelled to try and take some of that worry from her. She didn't let it happen often, because in truth she knew she was usually the best one to handle things. It was one of the areas where motherhood was forcing a change though and right now she was willing to accept an offer of help from her friend. Not that Rafael Barba could ever remember offering to keep a friend's child before but Olivia Benson had a way of making him do things he normally would not do. It was part of what drove him a little bit crazy about her.

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It was close to midnight when Olivia returned to her apartment to find Barba and Noah curled up together asleep on the couch. Olivia smiled, perhaps for the first time since that morning when she had left Noah that morning. "Hey " she whispered gently taping Barba on the shoulder trying her best not to wake the toddler.

"Hey, sorry, I must have dozed off. He woke up a little while ago and was a little freaked that you weren't here." Barba explained as Olivia took the sleeping child from his arms and carried him back to bedroom.

"How's Rollins?" He asked her when she returned.

"Physically, the doctors say she will recover quickly, emotionally it's going to take some time." She said shaking her head. "Thanks again Barba, I really appreciate it. I owe you one."

"Hmm, Olivia Benson, owing me, why do I like the sound of that? " He said with a grin. "So maybe I get to finish two sentences before you interrupt me next time we fight about a case?"

Olivia laughed, "Try telling me where to put my ass again and see how well it ends for you. Maybe it's better if I owe you in the personal front not he professional front." She said wishing at once she could take it back because it almost sounded like she was flirting with him. It was too late though, Barba got that grin on his face that he gets when he knows he has a defendant on the ropes.

"Well. Lieutenant, if you weren't so damn stubborn I wouldn't have to tell you things like that. So yes, let's say you owe me on the personal front then" He paused for a minute because rarely did he get the opportunity to see her squirm and he was going to enjoy it. "What about you let me take you and Noah to lunch tomorrow? "

She looked at him as if he had grown a second head, "You want to take my toddler and myself to lunch tomorrow? Don't you have some kind of stuffy Saturday brunch thing?" She asked trying to discourage him not sure where this was headed.

"Nope, just lunch with you and Noah at this Spanish place I like in the West Village. See you about noon?" He asked as he gathered his suit jacket from the couch smiling slightly knowing he had managed to completely throw her for a loop and also take her mind off the events of the day.

"OK then, we'll see you around noon." She said still not sure what to make of the whole situation and how it had transpired but honestly she was too tired to think about it and she could already hear Noah starting to call her from his room.

After he left closed the door she made her way to Noah's room and picked him up and carried him to her bed where most nights he ended up anyways. "Well Little Man, we should get some sleep. It sounds like we have lunch plans tomorrow."

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Barba arrived back at Oliva's apartment less than twelve hours after he had left. She answered the door wearing a pair of skinny jeans, boots and a sweater that Barba couldn't help but notice fit her just perfectly, the entire outfit fit her perfectly.

"Come in and have a seat, I just need to get Noah up, he fell asleep while I was getting ready." She said quickly.

Barba couldn't help but look around the apartment at the toys that had been picked up last night were already scattered back around. He wondered how long they had been up and if Olivia had gotten much sleep at all last night.

"I don't know much about kids but isn't there some rule about how you aren't supposed to wake them up?" He asked her.

Olivia smiled at him, "Well yes, that is generally true but sometimes you have to like, when you have lunch plans.

Barba shook his head, "Don't wake him, we can change out plans. I can go pick us up something and bring it back. " He offered.

"Are you sure?" She asked, "If you want I can make us something. If nothing else I make a great peanut butter and jelly."

"Hmm, how about turkey?" He asked her.

"I think I have some of that, and some fruit." She said, "And of course goldfish crackers."

"I've never been one to turn down a goldfish cracker." He laughed.

Olivia made them some sandwiches and they sat down to eat them. "Have you talked to Rollins today?" Barba asked her. Olivia shook her head, "I talked to Finn, she's resting."

"So what are your plans after Noah wakes up?" He asked her as they cleared up the dishes.

"Well I don't know. Until last night we didn't have any plans for today." She said

"Well if you want we could go to the park. It's pretty nice out for November. Then maybe we could try for diner at the place I told you about." He suggested.

Olivia stared at him trying to figure out what was going on. "Ok, Barba what's up? Surely you have better things to do with your Saturday than to hang out with a single cop mom and her toddler. What are you up too."

Barba could feel himself check his temper before he spoke, "Olivia, I am not up to anything, and yes there are probably other ways I could spend my Saturday but this is how I want to spend it. Is that so hard for you to believe?" He asked.

"Yes, a little, why?" She replied still trying to understand.

He set the plate he was holding in the sink and turned around and locked eye with her the way they did so many times when they were about to do battle, "Because, Lieutenant it has been a damn hard week and I thought it would be nice to spend a day off with the one person that might understand what all had happened this week. Someone who wouldn't want to hear about the details of how I almost lost the case, fought with the lead investigator on it who in the end saved my ass by getting the other parents to allow their child to testify next time. I needed friendly company and thought maybe you did too but clearly I have overstepped and should go." He said trying to walk past her when he felt her grab hold of his hand and he turned back to her.

"Rafe, the park and dinner would be nice, thank you." She said with a soft smile.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Someone Who Understands

Chapter 2

Olivia looked down at her phone to check the time. It was just after one in the morning. She closed the file she had finished and set it back on the table. When she noticed she had missed a text.

 _Hope you and Noah had a good day. Thanks again for yesterday._

Olivia felt a smile pull at her lips. Rafael Barba was a tough man to figure out. After knowing him for over three years there was still a lot she was learning. She would be the first to admit she had misjudged him for a long time. His three piece suits, Harvard law degree and well placed friends were a good cover for the man who grew up in a working class family and went to Harvard on a scholarship. He was ruthless when it came to winning and over the years she had watched as it became about more than winning but about justice for victims. When she was the victim he was a tireless warrior until the end. He could have pushed more he could have let he go down in flames but he was the wall that stood between herself and Lewis and she would always be grateful for that.

She was still puzzled by yesterday but she decided to take it at face value, he needed a friend. She understood that, the need to be with someone who understood the weight that you carried but knew that you didn't want to or need to talk about it all of the time. If she was honest with herself she would admit that yesterday was one of the most enjoyable days she had in a long time. It was obvious that he had little to no experience with young children but he tried and Noah seemed comfortable around him.

 _Yes, we caught up on a few things and both got a nap. No, thank you we both enjoyed ourselves._

 _You should go to bed._ He responded back almost immediately

Olivia rolled her eyes, he might be the bossiest person she had ever met. Why was he telling her to go to bed? Wasn't he still up?

 _So should you_

 _Yes Lieutenant_

 _Good night Counselor_

 _Good night Liv_

She felt that same smile pulling at her lips followed by that same sense of confusion. Why was he thinking about her and texting her? She somehow felt comforted and unsettled by it at the same time. She shook her head trying to stop thinking, he was right she needed to go to bed.

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Olivia found herself standing at a crime scene just as the sun was starting to rise. It was mornings like this she was grateful that Noah was an early riser. She had been able to make his breakfast and get him dressed before Lucy had gotten there. She was also grateful for a nanny who loved her son and was willing to work crazy hours. She pushed her thoughts of Noah from her mind as she stepped under the crime scene tape at the house where she had been called.

"What's going on?" She asked Carisi as he met her at the door.

"Elizabeth Hernandez, 22, was dead in one of the upstairs guest rooms this morning, naked and in the bed, beaten pretty badly"

"Did she live here?" She asked him

"No, best we can gather she works for the catering company that was here working a party last night." He filled her in.

"It wasn't just a party…"Olivia heard Barba's voice coming through the door behind her. She felt a knot in her stomach. If someone had called him already it meant this case was going to be political in some way. She hated political cases.

"Morning Counselor" She said briskly turning to find him dressed in one of his three piece suits pocket square and everything. Usually he reserved that level of suit for court so obviously whatever was going on was big. "So what was it?"

"Good morning," He responded not missing the fact that she was not happy to see him. He had learned to not take it personally. They had built a lot of trust over the years but this was her turf and she didn't like having ADAs there. "It was a fundraiser for Senator Mitchell's reelection campaign."

"Fabulous, and were you here for it?" She asked with a slight hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"No, my boss was." He told her flatly.

"All right, then what else do we know?" She said turning her attention back to her detective.

"Not a lot, she was discovered by one of the maids this morning. They are estimating time of death somewhere between ten and midnight last night."Carisi told her.

"That sounds kind of early, what time did this fundraiser end?" She asked

"It seems like it wrapped up around midnight" Sargent Dodds answered joining them. Barba instantly saw Olivia tense up again. As much as she didn't like having him there at least she for the most part trusted they were on the same side, she did not yet have that trust with her second in command.

"So are you telling me this girl was beaten to death and most likely raped while a fundraiser for a sitting United States Senator?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yes, Lieutenant, that is how it seems. If it makes it any better it appears that the Senator was gone by 9:00 so he is probably off the suspect list." Dodds explained.

"Well you will understand if I think we should verify that for ourselves." She told him her irritation growing. "Sargent why don't you accompany the victim and wait for Warner to have more answers for us. Carisi and Finn you two work on getting us a list of everyone who was here last night both guest and staff." She instructed as she turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" Barba asked even though he already knew the answer.

"To talk to the Senator" she said without turning back to them.

Dodds started to say something but the three other men quickly stopped him. "I've got this." Barba said turning to follow her out of the house.

"Olvia hold on…Olivia.."She ignored his as she walked to her car, damn she was not going to make this easy. Then again when did she ever? "Lieutenant, stop." He ordered as she reached the door handle.

She turned back to him ready for a fight, "What? I don't need a warrant to simply speak to the Senator or inform him that a twenty two year old was raped, beaten and murdered at a fundraiser for him last night. So I really have no need for you right now."

"That's where you're wrong. My boss and your boss have already decided that I'm with you guys from the start on this one." He told her.

"Great, just what I need another damn babysitter." She spat back at him.

"Well maybe you do if you are going to act like this, running off to question a Senator without any notice like he's a common suspect. Have you lost your mind or are you trying to lose your job?" He all but yelled at her. It was too early in the day for her to be this irritating.

"Neither, I'm doing my job and I don't need you and Dodds holding my hand and telling me how to act with the political crowd I've been doing this longer that either of you."

"Then act like it." He told her their eyes deadlocked waiting to see who would back down first. How many time shad they done this over the years? After all this time he could never be sure which of them would win a battle. This time he had to though, for her sake.

"Fine" She said reaching for the car door again. This time she felt his hand on her shoulder much the same way she had stopped him the other day, she took a breath and turned to look at him.

"Liv, I'm on your side remember. You can trust me." He told reminded her quietly.

She knew he was right. He had earned her trust, even when they didn't agree on a case he had never sold her out. He could have moved on from Special Victims by now but he chose to stay and had risked her own future more than once.

"I know" She said "I hate these cases and I hate having a second in command who I don't know if I can trust."

"I know, so let me help you through this one, show Dodds and whoever he might be talking to that you've got this under control." He said his voice taking a softer tone.

She nodded, "All right, we should probably at least call the Senator's office before stopping by."

Barba smiled at her, "That's my girl." He said hoping to lighten the tension a little

Olivia shot him a look, "Call me that again and your ass will be prosecuting jay walking cases until retirement." She said with half a laugh and a dirty look.

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An hour and a half later they were being shown into the Senator's New York office. They had agreed that Olivia would take the lead.

"Senator Mitchell, we appreciate you seeing us on such short notice." She told him, "I wish that we were here under better circumstances."

"Please have a seat. How can I help you?" He asked them.

"Senator a young woman was murdered at your fundraiser last night." Olivia informed him.

"What? That's terrible. What happened?" He asked

"All we can tell you at this point is that she worked for the catering company and was discovered this morning in one of the bedrooms." She explained to him, "From our estimates it occurred while the fundraiser was still going on."

To his credit the Senator looked truly horrified. "The story will be breaking soon Senator and we wanted to give you the courtesy of telling you before it did." Barba added. Olivia had to resist rolling her eyes at him even though she knew he was saying the right thing.

"I appreciate that Counselor and please know that my office and I will corporate however we can." He told them.

"We appreciate that Senator, if someone in your office could help us with a guest list that would be very helpful." Olivia said.

Without hesitating Senator mentioned picked up his phone, "Catherine, please have James get a complete list of last night's donors for the police immediately."

'Thank you Senator," Olivia started and then paused and glanced at Barba who dreaded the question she was about to ask, "Senator, by all accounts your left the fundraiser around nine could you please tell us where you went."

The Senator nodded and showed no sign of taking offense at their question, "I came back here with about five people from the campaign to go over the schedule for the rest of the week." He quickly wrote the names down on a piece of paper and handed it to Olivia. "Again, please let me know if I can help in any other way. Also, when it is appropriate I would like to personally like to offer condolences to the young woman's family." He said as he stood to show them out.

The pair stood and followed him to the door offering him their thanks for his cooperation. As they walked outside Olivia smiled at Barba, "See, it all went fine."

"You did well, of course you usually do. Come on I will buy you lunch before we head back to the precinct." He offered. She thought about saying they needed to get back to work but she had skipped breakfast and she knew her team wouldn't be ready yet.

"All right but I want breakfast food because I didn't eat breakfast." She told him.

He shook his head she always skipped breakfast, "Don't you feed your son breakfast every morning? Why don't you eat then? "

Olivia found herself rolling her eyes at him again, "Spoken like someone who doesn't actually have to get a child ready in the morning. You be at my place at six in the morning and see how easy it is." She laughed.

"Is that an invitation Lieutenant?" He teased.

"Just shut up and get me some food, Barba." She said suddenly feeling that mixture of feelings again that could only be described as unnerving comfort.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Someone Who Understands

Chapter 3

"All right what have we found out?" Olivia asked her team as they gathered back in the squad room.

"Well, Warner says it appears the official cause of death was suffocation due to strangulation but she was given a pretty good beating beforehand and definite signs of sexual trauma." Dodds informed them.

"Have we gotten any more information on the girl herself?" Olivia asked.

"Yes, it appears she was a senior at Hudson. She had been working for the catering company part time for about two years. She is originally from St. Louis, her parents are on their way." Carsis told them.

"Let me know when they get here. How is CSU doing processing the scene?"

"They are almost done and I have been going over the list of donors for any red flags. Other than being obnoxiously well connected so far everyone seems clean." Finn added

"Please let me know if you decide to question anyone from that list." Barba said, causing the team to look to Olivia for confirmation. She nodded in agreement earning a grateful smile from the ADA.

"Well then let's start with people who aren't on that list. Let's start with the help both the family's help and the catering company. I want some answers quickly. "

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Several hours later they had not gotten very far. They had learned that the last time anyone saw Elizabeth was around 9:00 as they were making rounds with dessert trays. She had not shown up with the crew to leave together.

"Is that typical for the crew to come and go together from the events." Olivia asked one of the other servers who was a friend of Elizabeth's.

"Yes, usually we ride together in one of the vans, but it's not required it's not unusual for girls to stay behind sometimes, you know to earn extra money, but Elizabeth never did." The girl named Kelly told them.

"Kelly, how did these girls earn extra money?" Finn asked,

"How do you think? By entertaining guest after the party, but again Elizabeth wasn't in on that scene." Kelly said adamantly.

"Kelly, did you notice anyone paying extra attention to Elizabeth? Maybe someone who didn't know she wasn't one of the girls who didn't provide extra services?" Olivia asked.

"I don't know we were pretty busy so I really didn't have much time to talk to her." Kelly started them paused, "There was this one guy who hit on me a couple of times but I told him to find someone else, I'm not into that either."

"Great Kelly, did you get his name? Could you describe him to us at all?" Olivia prompted him.

"Sure he said his name was Kevin, he was tall dark hair, dressed really well, of course everyone there was, he seemed a little older than Elizabeth and I but not too much, maybe thirty? Does that help?" Kelly asked.

Olivia took a deep breath, "Yes, Kelly, it really does. I'm going to have Detective Finn show you some pictures and see if you can recognize him."

As Kelly left Olivia's office with Finn Carisi stuck his head in, "Elizabeth's parents are here, Lieutenant. Dodds already took them to the morgue and they are on their way back up."

"Thank, Carisi. Please show them in as soon as they get back." She told him.

After he was gone she turned to Barba who had been unusually quiet, "What do you think?" She asked him.

"I think, we need to find out who was hitting on the girls and if the family that hosted the party knew that there were other services being offered. I think we probably have two different cases, neither of them are going to be pleasant. How are you holding up?" He asked her.

She sighed a little, "I'm OK, I could use some coffee though."

He nodded, "I will go get us some from the good cart after we finish with Elizabeth's parents. Unless you would rather have what Finn made?"

Olivia laughed, "No, good coffee would be nice." Olivia couldn't help but think for a second how it was nice to have him here today. He hadn't been in the way or tried to take over. She wondered if he had other work he needed to be doing and then she found herself wondering what he was doing after work. She shook her head. Where had that thought come from?

"Liv, you all right?: He asked interrupting her thoughts.

"Yes, sorry, I guess I need the coffee more than I realized." She said with a smile.

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"Liv, we have something" Finn told her as soon as they finished showing Elizabeth's parents out.

Barba looked at her and could see how tired she was and the emotional toll that talking with the girl's parents had on her. "I'm going to go get us that coffee, promise me you won't do anything before I get back?" He said both grinning and being serious at the same time.

Olivia nodded, "I promise, I won't arrest anyone in the next ten minutes."

Finn couldn't help but look between the two of them sensing something felt different but knowing better than to bring it up. He and Olivia headed back into the squad room while Barba left for the coffee.

"Meet Kevin Mitchell…"Dodds started to say.

"Mitchell as in Senator Mitchell? Olivia asked suddenly glad she had a moment without Barba there to collect her thoughts.

"His son." Dodds answered

"Did Kelly identify him as the man who was hitting on her?" She asked

"Yes, she said it was him but she couldn't say that she saw him talking to Elizabeth." Carisi added, "Do you want us to pick him up for questioning?"

"No, not yet, we need to proceed with caution all that we know for sure is that he hit on a waitress. "

"Caution is always a good thing." Barba said coming back in from his coffee run.

"You three keep working the evidence and talking to witnesses. You come to my office." She said to Barba.

He followed her to her office and handed her the coffee as she closed the door. Before she spoke she took a long sip noticing the taste of her favorite hazelnut cream. How did he know that?

"So what do you want to do?" He asked her.

"We need to at least talk to him today. He is the only lead we have at the moment. Do you have a suggestion as to the best way to do it?" She asked.

"Well, the Senator promised to help however he could, so let's see if he means it. I will call the office and say that we need to meet with he and his son as soon as possible and see where that gets us."

Olivia nodded, "Today if possible" she added.

Barba rolled his eyes, "You are so pushy."

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Barba had managed to get them a meeting with the Senator and his son that evening but not until nine. Olivia decided it best to send everyone home for the day. Telling them she would call them if anything urgent came from the meeting if not she would see them at seven the next morning. Barba had asked her if she wanted to grab dinner before they went but she wanted to go home and see Noah and put him to bed. As they were starting to head in different directions she stopped, "You are welcome to eat with us" she offered.

"I don't want to intrude on your time with Noah." He hesitated.

"It will be fine, he likes you."

So they ended up back at her place giving Lucy a chance to step out for a little while. Olivia had made up a chicken pot pie over the weekend and Lucy had heated it up.

"Ok, I have to confess I had no idea you could cook." He said as they finished eating.

"Before Noah I never did but, I've taught myself a few things so he's not constantly eating take out or boxed meals." She explained as she picked the boy up from his highchair. "Now if you will excuse us someone needs a bath."

Barba smiled as he watched her with the boy. There was no doubt how much either of them loved each other. He sat on her couch as found his eyes closing as he waited for her to get back. He didn't realize he had even fallen asleep until he heard her.

"If you keep sleeping on my couch I'm going to start charging you rent." She said with a laugh as he started and woke.

"Maybe you shouldn't have such a comfortable couch." He countered with a still sleepy smile and Olivia couldn't help but find the sight of him stretching and fumbling to straighten his suit somewhat adorable. "Is Noah asleep already?" He asked.

Olivia shook her head, "Lucy is putting him to bed. Sometimes it can take a while and we don't have time for that." She told him the disappointment evident on her face.

He was standing in front of her now and he couldn't stop himself from running around a hand down her shoulder and arm, "Tomorrow night, I promise." He said looking into her eyes.

"I hope so." She said enjoying the feel of the warmth of his hand that was now loosely holding hers and that same unsettling comfort began to wash over her. "We should probably go." She said still not moving her hand away from his.

She felt his thumb gently swipe over the back of her hand before he released it, "Let's go." He said picking her coat up off the back of the couch and helping her put it on.

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"Damn it!" Olivia yelled as they walked out of the Senator's office towards Barba's car. Kevin Mitchell had conveniently been called away on a business emergency out of the country that afternoon. 'We should have gone talked to him earlier."

Barba was seething too, "So much for the Senator's full corporation."

"I should start running through his background tonight. Get a head start on tomorrow." Olivia said.

"Would it do you any good if I suggested you go home and go to bed?" Barba asked and the look she shot him gave him his answer. "Can I at least come and help you?" he offered.

Olivia felt herself calming down a little, "Would it do any good if I said no?"

Barba grinned at her, "Not really" he said closing the car door as she got in.

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They worked on a list of things to cover the next day. Questions about Kevin Mitchell's past that might lead them to some answers. Also, they needed to go back over the rest of the guest list and staff to see if anyone had actually seen Elizabeth and Kevin together. Truthfully there wasn't much else they could do tonight but they were both frustrated and hated to give up.

"I feel like we've gotten nowhere today." Olivia said in frustration closing the file her laptop.

"Well Kevin Mitchell leaving the country certainly gives us a little more reason to look at him closely." Barba reminded her as he noticed she was rubbing her neck and he scooted over to her on the couch placing his hand on her sholders, "Can I?" he asked and smiled when all she did was let out a soft hum.

There were about a million reasons he should not be sitting on her couch at midnight rubbing her shoulders each of them with a glass of wine in front of them but somehow the boundaries between them were beginning to get fuzzy and neither of them seemed to mind.

They sat there for a few minutes both forgetting about the day and the dead girl, the political hoops they were going to have to jump through and just enjoyed each other's company. After several minutes Olivia finally spoke but Barba noticed she made no effort to move away from him.

"What are we doing?" She asked not turning to look at him.

He stopped rubbing her shoulders but left his hands on them not wanting to appear like he was running away but not wanting to scare her off either. "I am not really sure, Liv, but it feels nice to me. What about you?" he asked her not knowing what to expect.

She turned to face him still not moving away causing his hands to fall and down her arms, "I feels nice, but in my experience feeling nice doesn't always end well." She told him.

"Liv, we don't even know what this is, let's not talk about how it might end if we don't even know if it is beginning." He said as he rubbed his hand along her arm back to her hand the way he had earlier.

"You are sitting on my couch holding my hand for the second time this evening; I think we have to acknowledge something is beginning." She said with a smile.

"Does it bother you?" He asked worried he might have crossed a line.

"No, and that's what worries me." She told him honestly, "I like it"

He moved his hand from her hand to the side of her face, "Me too, and I wouldn't mind taking our time and seeing where it goes." She didn't answer him but she didn't move away either and so he leaned closer to her slowly in case she was uncomfortable but she must not have been because the next thing he knew her lips were on his. It was a soft slow kiss that didn't ask for anything more than that moment. When he was afraid it might start to ask more he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers.

"I will take that to mean you are ok with seeing where this goes?" He said slightly breathlessly

"Yes and long as it doesn't go to work and it goes slow." She said lacing her fingers around his.

He pulled back and smiled at her, "Of course and it that case, I should really go now. Good night Liv see you in the morning."

"Goodnight." Was all she could manage to say as she sat there on the couch trying to figure out exactly what had just happened.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Someone Who Understands

Chapter 4

Olivia rolled over when she heard the pinging of her cell phone next to her and she looked at the time, it was 6:15. A smile crept across her lips as she read his text.

Sleep well?

Yes, you?

Yes, I have to be in court this morning. I will see you at the precinct after lunch. Please don't rush in to anything.

Olivia rolled her eyes a little at that but she knew he meant well.

I know what I'm doing

I know you do. Oh, and go look outside your door.

Olivia sat up in bed, curious about that last one. She grabbed her bathrobe and headed to the front door. She opened it to find a paper bag and a cup of coffee sitting in front of it. She smiled when she opened the bag and found a cinnamon crunch bagel and in it and a hot bowl of fresh oatmeal. Her phone beeped again.

Breakfast for you and Noah

Olivia felt the same warmth wash over her that she had felt last night sitting on the couch with him. Was this how Rafael Barba wooed a woman? What did it mean that he thought of her enough before court to go out of his way to bring her and her son breakfast? She shook all the stray thoughts from her head and texted him back.

Thank You, have a good morning in court, see you after lunch

She sighed, closed the door and turned her attention to the child who was calling her from his crib. She set the bag on the counter and went and picked him up. "We've got breakfast already ready for us Little Man. Rafael brought you some oatmeal."

"Raffi?" Noah asked with a smile looking around for his new friend.

"Oh no he's not here right now Buddy, but maybe later. Do you like him Noah?" She asked.

"Raffi" he said again still looking around.

Olivia felt that same unnerving comfort again. She hadn't dated anyone since Noah came home and the last thing she wanted to do was bring men in and out his life, but the affection that they seemed to have for each other could not be denied either. She needed to stop thinking about it for now she had a case to worry about.

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB

When she arrived in the squad room her team was already at work on the assignments that she had sent them. "What do we know?" She asked walking through the doors and stopping at Finn's desk.

"Well, he has no official criminal history." Finn offered.

"What do you mean official?" She asked.

"He has a sealed juvie record." He explained

'Any chance of us getting it unsealed?" She wondered out loud.

"Unsealing the juvie record of a Seantor's son? I don't think even Barba has that much pull." Dodds commented.

"No, probably not. What else?" She asked.

"He attended two prep schools and three colleges. I haven't been able to get leads from any of them as to why so many." Carisi added.

"Well that sounds like a pattern and a cover up to me." Finn said.

"Yes, but probably not enough to get us a warrant. Do we have anyone yet that saw him with Elizabeth?" She asked.

"No the best we have is that nobody remembers seeing him after his father left at nine so everyone thought he had left with him." Carisi continued.

"Well he wasn't at the campaign meeting so that throws a big opening in his alibi. " Finn said

"Wait a second Lieutenant, I've got something. I just got an alert. Mitchell is expected to be flying through JFK and catching a connecting flight to Europe this afternoon." Carisi said excitedly looking up from his computer. "His plane lands in half an hour and his next one takes off an hour later. Do we pick him up?"

"We can't pick him up without a warrant." Dodds said

Olivia looked at her watch as she weighed her options. She knew that picking him up was risky and there would be hell to pay for doing it without any kind of warrant, starting with Barba but she also knew if they didn't they might lose their only lead.

"Go" She said nodding her head.

"Should we at least call Barba first?" Dodds asked

"He's in court and we don't have to clear out actions with him, Sargent, go now." She ordered walking to her office as her team scrambled. She pulled out her phone trying to decide if she should text Barba, ultimately deciding not to distract him from his court case. That might not have been the best decision.

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Her team had just arrived back with Kevin Mitchell and was setting him up in one of the conference rooms so they could speak to him without putting him in one of the interrogation rooms, when she heard the door to her squad room slam shut and she didn't even have to turn around to know who had come in.

"Lieutenant a word in your office, now." He said his voice sharp and cold.

Olivia took a breath before turning, "Yes Counselor of course." She said calmly. "Detecive Carisi tell Mr. Mitchell I will be with him shortly."

Barba had already made his way to her office when she came in and closed the door.

"Have you lost your mind?" He yelled the second the door closed. "Why the hell would you think it was a good idea to pick up a Senator's son at the airport, with no warrant and from what I can tell not one damn bit of evidence?"

"He was leaving the country Barba? What choice did we have? Let him go?" She asked her eyes locked on his not ready to back down.

"You could have called me!" He yelled again.

"You were in court and I do not have to clear my command decisions with you." She argued back.

"No but you do have to answer for them to others Olivia and I don't like being completely unaware of what's going on when The Mayor calls me asking why we are arresting a senator's son at the airport." He pointed out to her.

"Oh so you are upset because it made you look bad to the Mayor." She charged, knowing it was a low blow, they were way past that.

"No, I'm mad because we are supposed to be on the same team and I was out of the loop." He explained a bit of hurt mixing in with his anger.

His honesty caught her off guard and she lowered her tone, "I'm sorry I didn't text you or call you. I didn't want to distract you in court and I knew it would. However, I am not sorry we picked him up. It was the right call and you know it."

He nodded his head, "Next time let me worry about being distracted all right? Now what new information do I need to know before I go in there?" He asked still angry but ready to get to work.

Olivia quickly filled him in on the sealed record and the pattern of leaving schools.

"That's still not enough for any kind of warrant. Do you have anyone who can even place him with the girl that night?" He asked her.

"No" She said honestly.

Barba just stared at her, "Your team better find something quick." He told her.

Just then Dodds came in, "I think we have something. CSU just finished with the trash from the scene. They found a used condom and somevof the girl's missing things including one nice finger print on her purse. "

"I don't suppose we have Mitchell's finger prints on file?" Barba asked.

"Actually we do, he volunteered with a youth club that required finger print background checks. It's a match." He told them.

Barba nodded and looked back at Olivia, "Now we have something."

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"Ok Little Man, I think it's time we clean these toys up and get ready for bed." Olivia told her son.

"Not tired." The boy told her turning his attention back to his toys. "Where's Rafi?" He asked her.

Olivia sighed, how had the boy gotten so attached to him already?

"I don't think Rafi's coming tonight buddy." She told him. Her mind going back to the afternoon.

The evidence had been enough to arrest Mitchell. They had not been able to get a a confession from him but Barba felt good about his chances. With all of Mitchell's connections he had managed a quick arraignment and of course bail had not been a problem. Olivia had not spoken to Barba since he had left to go to the courthouse and she could tell he was still upset with her when he left. A knock at the door brought Olivia out of her thoughts.

She answered it to find Barba dressed in jeans and a sweater at her door. He was holding a paper bag

"It's a little late for breakfast." She joked hoping to ease the tension.

He opened the bag to reveal a bottle of scotch and red wine. " Thought these might help." He said his voice softer than this afternoon. She nodded and let him in.

"Rafi!" Noah exclaimed when he saw him running to him.

Barba scooped the toddler up and hugged him, "Hola, mi Amigo." He said and then said something else in Spanish to him that Olivia couldn't make out but the boy seemed to understand as he noodded and ran back to his toys.

Olivia looked on the scene with puzzled amazement. Was this the same man who had so awkwardly held her son earlier this year? Now they were speaking Spanish together.

"Are the two of you going to tell me what that's about?" She asked.

Barba smiled at her for the first time all day, "I asked him if he was going to be a big boy for his Mami and pick his toys up."

Olivia starred at him,"I didn't realize Lucy had taught him so much Spanish."

Barba flashed her the grin he got when he was especially proud of himself, "I might have helped."

Olivia nodded more confused than ever. He didn't seem angry at her anymore. He was almost acting like nothing had happened.

"I need to get him to bed." She told him, "Will you wait?"

Barba reached for her hand and wrapped his fingers around hers. "I'm not going anywhere. Take your time." He told her before heading to the kitchen to set down the bottles.

There was that unsettling comfort again. She was prepared for him to be pissed at her and tell her they weren't going to work and here he was reassuring her that he wasn't going anywhere.

Half an hour later she returned from Noah's room and Barba was sitting on one of the stools at her kitchen counter slowly sipping his scotch a glass of wine sitting waiting for her.

She sat down next to him took a sip of her wine, a deep breathe and slowly placed her hand over his on the kitchen counter smiling as he inched a little closer a gave her a soft kiss.

"So you aren't still mad at me?" She asked

Barba took a breath, "I'm pissed as hell at Lieutenant Benson who left me hanging in the wind today, but It's not the first time I've been pissed at her and I'm sure it won't be the last and I know that goes both ways. As far as Olivia, the woman that I really care about and would like to be more a part of her life I was never mad at her."

"I don't know if I know how to keep the two relationships separate." She told him honestly.

"Tell me something, today did you hesitate even for a second to pick Mitchell up even though you knew I'd be mad?" He asked her.

"No, I didn't" She told him wondering if they were about to have it out.

"Good" he said catching her completely by surprise. "You shouldn't have. You were doing your job. If this is going to work when we are on the job we can't make decisions because it might make the other one mad. Also, if this is going to work we can't let our work decisions make us mad at the other one when we leave work."

Olivia sighed, "In my experience that second part isn't so easy."

He took a sip of his drink, "No, I don't imagine it always will be but I don't mind hard work and I know you don't either."

"You know I haven't dated anyone sense I got Noah right? You know he comes first." She told him.

"Liv, I know how much you love your son and I know how much your job. Knowing both of those things I am still sitting here telling you I think we could have something good, if you want it. So do you?"

Olivia thought instantly to the bagel and oatmeal outside her door that morning, the hazelnut cream in her coffee, and the way her entire body felt warm when he touched her. She knew it was a risk and it might not be easy but something told her Rafael Barba might just be worth the risk.

She leaned over and kissed him, "Yes, I do."

The End


End file.
